By Elizabeth Adegbesan

Driven by an 18.7 percent decline in import bill, Nigeria’s trade surplus rose by 32.06 percent month-on-month (MoM) to $3.46 billion in April 2026 from $2.62 billion in March 2026.

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, disclosed this yesterday in its April 2026 Economic Report.

CBN said: “The goods account recorded a higher trade surplus, mainly driven by a decline in import bill. Provisional data showed that the trade account recorded a surplus of $3.46 billion, compared to $2.62 billion in the preceding month.

“The performance was driven by 18.70 per cent decrease in import bills to $3.13 billion from $3.85 billion in March, as imports of both oil and non-oil products declined.”

Export receipts increased by 1.85 per cent to $6.59 billion from $6.47 billion, owing to higher non-oil export earnings.

In a breakdown of the trade receipts by composition, CBN said that oil exports accounted for 85.41 per cent of total export receipts, while non-oil exports constituted the balance.

In terms of imports, non-oil imports accounted for 81.75 per cent, while oil imports made up the balance.

On oil export, CBN said: “Oil export earnings moderated during the review period, driven by lower receipts from gas and refined petroleum product exports.

“Aggregate oil export earnings fell slightly to $5.62 billion in April, from $5.70 billion in March.

“A breakdown shows that receipts from gas exports and refined petroleum product exports decreased to $0.84 billion and $0.79 billion, respectively, compared with $0.86 billion and $1.35 billion in the preceding month.

“In contrast, receipts from crude oil exports increased to $3.99 billion, from $3.49 billion in March, driven by higher global crude oil prices.”

The apex bank noted that Non-oil export earnings improved in April, owing to a rise in global commodity prices.

“Earnings from non-oil products exports increased to $0.96 billion from $0.77 billion, driven largely by improved export receipts from cashew nuts and fertiliser.

“Analysis of Nigeria’s top 10 non-oil export destinations indicated India as the leading destination, accounting for 16.51 per cent, followed by Vietnam (10.96 percent), the US (8.71 percent), China (8.48 percent), and Germany (5.88 percent)”

On imports, CBN said: “Merchandise imports decreased, driven by lower oil and non-oil imports.

“A disaggregation showed that non-oil imports decreased to $2.56 billion from $2.81 billion in the preceding month, due to a decline in imports of agricultural goods and raw materials.

“Similarly, oil import fell to $0.57 billion from $1.05 billion, owing to increased domestic refining capacity.”

By Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, has queried the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) over its imposition of a 1% Capital Injection Fee, alongside verification fees to be paid by insurance companies in the ongoing sector recapitalization exercise.

The query followed a petition by NICON Insurance Limited and Nigeria Reinsurance Corporation in which the two companies accused NAICOM of imposing fees on the insurance companies, beyond statutory provisions.

A memo referenced: F/LEG/0608/2026/22, dated August 6, and signed by the Permanent Secretary (Finance) of the Ministry of finance, Mr. Raymond Omachi, for the Minister, directed the Commission to provide “detailed response and legal justification to the issues raised”.   

In addition the Commission was also directed to transfer entire capital injection funds into the CBN escrow account and to suspend the enforcement of the contested Processing Fees, 1% Capital Injection Fee, and full capital escrow account transfer directives against NICON and Nigeria Re, pending the determination of the petition.

Issues raised by the petitioners against NAICOM were: the assessment and demand for 1% Capital Injection Fee, alongside additional Processing and Verification Fees as contained in the commission’s Minimum Capital Requirement Guidelines amounting to N305 million for NICON and N375 million for Nigeria Re.  

The two companies also opposed the directives of the Commission requiring existing operational insurance entities to transfer their entire capital injections funds into an escrow account at the Central Bank of Nigeria as against the 10 percent statutory deposit requirement prescribed under Section 16 (3) of the Nigeria Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA) 2025.

They contend that they have complied with the statutory deadline of July 31, 2026 by injection of N20 billion and N30 billion, respectively, into Mudaba Term Deposit Accounts with Lotus Bank Ltd, exceeding their adjusted requirements of N16 billion and N28 billion.

Both companies claimed to have deposited N2. 5 billion with the CBN pursuant to Section 16 (3) of NIIRA 2025 and had made initial fee payments of N80 million and N75 million.   

However, the commission said yesterday, “All these are requirements released since last year in the Guidelines which all the recapitalised 43 companies and the 8 awaiting verification have complied with.”

By Godwin Oritse

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has reaffirmed its commitment to building an efficient, transparent and globally competitive maritime administration through sustained reforms and stronger stakeholder collaboration.

Director-General of NIMASA, Dr. Dayo Mobereola, gave the assurance while receiving the leadership of the Alumni Association of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (AMANO) during a courtesy visit to the agency’s headquarters in Lagos.

Mobereola said NIMASA would continue to strengthen regulatory oversight, promote innovation and create more opportunities for Nigerian seafarers in line with the policy direction of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

“Our vision is to build a maritime administration that is efficient, transparent and globally competitive,” he said.

He described the maritime sector as a key driver of Nigeria’s economic growth and identified industry associations such as AMANO as critical partners in developing policies that would unlock the sector’s full potential.

Earlier, AMANO President, Emmanuel Maiguwa, commended NIMASA for deploying an electronic platform for issuing Seafarers’ Certificates, describing it as a major step towards improving efficiency, transparency and accessibility.